Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 35,941 Shares of Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS)

Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Northern Trust Co. (NASDAQ:NTRS - Free Report) by 22.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 194,416 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 35,941 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.10% of Northern Trust worth $19,928,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. purchased a new stake in Northern Trust during the 4th quarter worth about $140,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Northern Trust by 28.7% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 128,396 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $13,161,000 after buying an additional 28,615 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Northern Trust by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,532,401 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $259,571,000 after buying an additional 39,592 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Northern Trust by 175.8% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 93,391 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $9,573,000 after acquiring an additional 59,530 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in Northern Trust by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 14,118 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,443,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.19% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, COO Peter Cherecwich sold 26,132 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.36, for a total transaction of $2,936,191.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 26,586 shares in the company, valued at $2,987,202.96. This represents a 49.57 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Thomas A. South sold 3,804 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.00, for a total transaction of $429,852.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 81,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,242,722. This trade represents a 4.44 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 35,335 shares of company stock valued at $3,970,211. 0.77% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Northern Trust Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NTRS stock traded up $0.35 on Friday, hitting $88.29. 2,003,303 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,260,022. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.10. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $102.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $102.84. Northern Trust Co. has a one year low of $79.32 and a one year high of $114.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Northern Trust (NASDAQ:NTRS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.30. Northern Trust had a return on equity of 13.74% and a net margin of 12.77%. Equities analysts forecast that Northern Trust Co. will post 8.27 EPS for the current year.

Northern Trust Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%. Northern Trust's payout ratio is currently 30.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on NTRS shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Northern Trust from $136.00 to $132.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Northern Trust from $107.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Northern Trust from $116.00 to $98.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Northern Trust from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Northern Trust from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.31.

About Northern Trust

Northern Trust Corporation, a financial holding company, provides wealth management, asset servicing, asset management, and banking solutions for corporations, institutions, families, and individuals worldwide. It operates in two segments, Asset Servicing and Wealth Management. The Asset Servicing segment offers asset servicing and related services, including custody, fund administration, investment operations outsourcing, investment management, investment risk and analytical services, employee benefit services, securities lending, foreign exchange, treasury management, brokerage services, transition management services, banking, and cash management services.